Mascara applicators in the form of brushes are already known. Such brushes typically comprise a gripping component, which may serve as a stopper for a container containing the mascara to be applied, together with a stem extending from the gripping component between a proximal end and a distal end.
A multitude of bristles extend radially from the stem, at its distal end, thus forming an application head.
These prior art brushes are designed to be used as follows.
The user dips the brush in a container containing mascara which has the effect of coating the bristles and the stem with mascara. The user then performs an eyelash brushing action using the brush which has the effect of transferring the mascara from the brush towards and onto the eyelashes, combing the eyelashes in the process.
We are familiar, in particular, with mascara brushes of which the application head is formed by a straight shaft positioned at the distal end of the stem, in line with the stem, and on which identical disks containing a central hole are threaded one behind the other. Each disk has teeth extending radially in a ring, the teeth forming the bristles of the brush, that is to say the brush's means of application.
To prevent the rotation of the disks on the shaft, the central hole in each disk, in which the shaft is inserted, presents a non-circular section, the sections of the hole in each disk, on the one hand, and of the shaft, on the other hand, are matched to prevent the free rotation of the disks on the shaft.
Such a construction of the application head lends itself well to automated manufacturing enabling production of original and cheap brushes given that this construction is based on a very simple mechanical assembly (by threading) of disks which are all identical and a shaft.
Such a brush construction is not without drawbacks, however.
In particular, because the disks are all identical to each other (for economic reasons, in particular) and the disks cannot pivot on the shaft, their teeth are consequently all aligned along the shaft and form straight rows extending parallel to the shaft.
Now it may be worthwhile, notably from the point of view of the cosmetic result, to obtain an “expansion” of the teeth forming the bristles, that is to say a distribution of the bristles along the shaft which, without necessarily being disordered or random, prevents the forming of areas without bristles along the whole length of the shaft, like the areas separating each longitudinal row of teeth of the prior art brushes.